A lot has been written about the evolution of content management and the CMS market. This emerging but uneasy market has been around for a number of years now but is still very immature (see CMS market evolution and Content Management Trends – Growing upward, outward and onward…).

There are literally thousands of solutions. No hyperbole – thousands of solutions. They range from free to millions of dollars and most are horribly user unfriendly, complex and over-priced. As such, this nascent market relies on a lot of smoke and mirrors to sell their products as true success stories are rare and ephemeral.

Read Ziff Davis event shows immaturity of CMS market

 STATUS UPDATE:

I sent Ziff Davis a note highlighting this issue and telling them of my blog entry. I received no response. However, this morning I received two more spam invites from Ziff Davis – invites to the same event we were uninvited to!!! Unbelievable!! Quality PR and event management....

I was, as they say, ‘in the dark’ when I worked on developing my first intranet (about 1995). Not only were intranets (as we know them today) brand spanking new, they were and are inside the corporate firewall. Therefore it was and is rare to actually see what they look like and truly learn an intranet’s strengths and weaknesses. Best practices were fleeting.

The best place to see and learn about other intranets (outside of this blog of course J) is to go to a seminar or conference that talks about best practices and showcases actual intranets. We can talk theory all we want, but nothing substitutes seeing the real thing.

World-class intranets: proven practices for success is a seminar produced by Prescient Digital Media that we’re kick-starting in Quebec. Led by our Quebec-based senior consultant Claude Malaison this seminar will talk about being the best – and it will show some of the best. Best of all, it’s free!

Avec leur expérience hors du commun et leur longue pratique du métier, les spécialistes invités (séminaire et déjeuner gratuits) aborderont : comment les entreprises et organisations des secteurs privé et public peuvent maximiser leur investissement dans un intranet super performant ; et des études de cas de vrais intranets qui fonctionnent !

Among other things this seminar will showcase how private and public sector organizations can maximize their investments in a high-performing intranet. Of course, there will also be real world case studies of successful intranets.

See World-class intranets for more information.

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On another note I must apologize for my unusually deceptive April Fool’s joke below. Normally I don’t do April Fool’s jokes, but I must have been feeling particularly devilish this past Saturday… Some sent kind notes or voiced concern. I am very appreciative to receive them. It’s nice to have friends. It was however in jest and I didn’t mean to give anyone a scare! I thought my shtick about “pastries” would’ve been a sure-fire clue!